Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, is visiting India on Wednesday. This is his first visit in two years. This visit comes at a crucial time when his company is facing legal challenges in India and also exploring new opportunities in India which is growing rapidly.
Altman's visit is part of a broader tour of Asia, and as it is following closely of the emergence of a powerful Chinese AI rival, DeepSeek. DeepSeek's AI assistant has recently surpassed ChatGPT in popularity, becoming the top-rated free app on Apple's App Store in the US. This development and intensifying competition in the AI landscape highlights of Sam Altman global outreach efforts.
Few days back, OpenAI announced a joint venture with SoftBank Group to expand its AI services to businesses across Japan. This strategy is a significant step towards broadening OpenAI's reach beyond the US market. Altman's previous visit to India in 2023 included a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where they discussed the potential of AI in India's tech ecosystem. However, since then, OpenAI has faced legal hurdles in India, including a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by local news agency ANI. Despite these challenges, India remains a critical market for OpenAI, the second-largest user base after the US. With competition heating up from Chinese rivals, Altman may be seeking new investment and partnership opportunities in India to diversify and strengthen OpenAI's position. OpenAI maintains that it operates within the bounds of fair use principles, utilising only publicly available data.
Altman's visit to India is expected to be a busy one, with back to back meetings with Prime Minister Modi and Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Electronics and IT. Hopefully the outcome of this visit could significantly shape OpenAI's future in India.
